Latest Blog Posts

When your child hits puberty, it is a sensitive age. They aren't as enamored in the same activities that they once were. Sports is the perfect outlet to allow your child to express themselves on the field or court while staying interested in healthy activities that can keep them out of trouble during these impressionable years. But, how exactly do you make sports a priority in their life and keep them motivated at the same time? These tips can ensure your child excels at sports in their own right and stays down the straight and narrow during those pubescence years. 1. Find The Right Sport At...

Are girls restricted by other people's attitudes when it comes to choosing the sports they want to play? Discover why there's never been a better time for girls to choose football or rugby, and learn 11 ways to encourage your daughter to achieve her goals!It's been so exciting being involved in setting up new S4K classes in Twickenham and Hounslow, and ensuring that both boys and girls feel equally welcome. There are many d...

Smiles are a definite sign of self-esteem!
​Sport for physical and mental fitnessIt is common knowledge that regular exercise gained through playing sport is great for kids' developing bodies and their physical fitness. In fact the NHS guidelines state, "to maintain a basic level of health, children and young people aged 5 to 18 need to do at least 60 minutes of [moderate to vigorous] physical activity every day." These recommendations tell us that vigorous activity, which makes you breat...

Parents often take their children to a toddler or kids sports class and they don't quite get it or feel comfortable and don't settle. This may be any kids class, whether they be a rugby class, a football class or a dance class. It may be the coach, the activity, the environment or even the type of sport it is, that just doesn't suit certain children. I often hear children say..."I am no good at sport"…"I don't enjoy exercise"...I have heard it so many times My reply is "You haven't tried the right sports class yet" That's why at S4K we offer classes in so many sports from such a...

As the new Network Partner for Sport4Kids Beaconsfield Bucks Territory, I would like to introduce myself, tell you a bit about my background and passion for encouraging children to take part in Exercise and Sport. I would also like to welcome you to a free taster in one of our wonderful toddler and kids football and rugby classes. I have run a successful sports coaching business for more than 10 years, working mostly in Primary Schools in and around High Wycombe. My team of coaches currently work together to instil a love of sport in more than one thousand 4-11 year olds a week...

Sport4Kids Football Coaching, Child Development & Girls Football Blog!

We are passionate about everything to do with sport and child development. We have a number of authors who love nothing better than to post about their passions, thoughts and feelings around the sports that they love. Take a look at our posts below and remember to link in with your favourite authors via email and social media!

Marcus Doyle is a charismatic, energetic entertainer and sports performer from Surrey. He is a doting father of two, C (9 years) and J (11 years) and passionate about everything to do with child development and sport. He has been coaching for over 20 years and loves every minute of it.

Unless you live in a pleasant little cul-de-sac on Neptune, you’ll know that football now finds itself not only the world’s most popular pastime but possibly its greatest obsession. The global enthusiasm for it has reached a level previously unknown, in part due to the financial benefits awaiting its finest exponents but also due to the sheer excitement generated from the game itself. A major bone of contention in the coaching world these days is how to identify and handle the greater numbers of children wanting to play the sport. Equally important, is how to nurture those showing aptitude and talent whilst protecting a child’s natural enthusiasm. The Football Association (FA) has long maintained that children should be coached in organised groups from the age of 5 but those of us in the global football family who are aware of what pre school aged children are truly capable of see it differently. There isn’t a youngster that gives their coach a high five at the start of a k...

Mark’s recollections of the France 98 World Cup tournament struck a chord for a whole host of reasons. Being significantly older than the good Doctor I watched most of those games in my local, but his perceptions of that England team being seen through 11 year old eyes made my mind wander. Argentina 78 I remember bits of. Mostly the extraordinary scenes at the start of the final, tonnes of ticker tape descending from the skies onto the heads of the home team and their Dutch counterparts. But I was 6, the nuances of Argentina’s 3-1 victory lost on me. No, the World Cup that rocked my world, filled my Panini sticker album and convinced me that football meant a little bit more than just a pastime, was Spain 82. My mother is from Armagh, Northern Ireland, my father from Dublin. I favoured the southern side of the border, but at this point, the occasional flash of brilliance from Liam Brady aside, we were no great shakes internationally. But Northern Ireland had qualified, along with Engla...